Marketing a database

[Dr. Edward Warren]

I have created a large Access Database which generates medical
notes and Histories and Physicals. It has a great deal of VB code
running in the background. It has worked well for a year and has
eliminated my need for transcription services ($30,000/yr). If I
wanted to market this to other physicians where would I start?
Can I distribute it if it is based on Access? Can I sell it commercially?
Is there an outfit that is set up to help someone like me do this?
Thank you,
Edward Warren
(e-mail address removed)

 

[Joseph Meehan]

I have created a large Access Database which generates medical
notes and Histories and Physicals. It has a great deal of VB code
running in the background. It has worked well for a year and has
eliminated my need for transcription services ($30,000/yr). If I
wanted to market this to other physicians where would I start?
Can I distribute it if it is based on Access? Can I sell it
commercially? Is there an outfit that is set up to help someone like
me do this?
Thank you,
Edward Warren
(e-mail address removed)

You need to purchase the developers version of Access. It is a lot more
expensive, but it allows you to create and distribute Access files to users
without regard to whether or not they have Access installed on their
machine.

 

[Mike Painter]

I have created a large Access Database which generates medical
notes and Histories and Physicals. It has a great deal of VB code
running in the background. It has worked well for a year and has
eliminated my need for transcription services ($30,000/yr). If I
wanted to market this to other physicians where would I start?
Can I distribute it if it is based on Access? Can I sell it
commercially? Is there an outfit that is set up to help someone like
me do this?
Thank you,
Edward Warren
(e-mail address removed)

Your first step is to find out if others find it as easy to use as you do.

Most doc developed medical software programsdone by individuals are like a
custom built suit. It fits you perfectly but no one else finds it
comfortable. You need an off the rack approch, one that fits a lot of people
well but few perfectly.

You also need to see what the competition has. There are a ton of SOAP
notes programs out there. Most are expensive and many of them would be hard
to develop in Access and really are better done in VB or C (we need a
generic symbol for C variants.)

 

[Joseph Meehan]

Dr. Edward Warren wrote:
(we need a generic symbol for C variants.)

I vote for C*

 

[Arvin Meyer]

I'm sorry, but I disagree. There is nothing better for developing database
front-ends than Access. Nothing, anywhere, at any price. That doesn't mean
that in the future there won't be, but as of right now. Access can do
practically anything needed to create a front-end for a database running on
a PC on a network. The engine is a different story. For medical records, I'd
suggest using SQL-Server because it can be made more secure. I don't believe
that the JET engine is secure enough to satisfy my (very strict)
interpretation of the HIPPA laws.
--
Arvin Meyer, MCP, MVP
Microsoft Access
Free Access downloads:
http://www.datastrat.com
http://www.mvps.org/access

 

[Joseph Meehan]

I'm sorry, but I disagree. There is nothing better for developing
database front-ends than Access. Nothing, anywhere, at any price.
That doesn't mean that in the future there won't be, but as of right
now. Access can do practically anything needed to create a front-end
for a database running on a PC on a network. The engine is a
different story. For medical records, I'd suggest using SQL-Server
because it can be made more secure. I don't believe that the JET
engine is secure enough to satisfy my (very strict) interpretation
of the HIPPA laws.

Ease up there partner. I was voting for a naming convention for the
various C programming languages.

I do agree that Access makes a good front end and likely for most cases
it is the best, but there are other situations where other solutions are
better.

 

[Mike Painter]

I'm sorry, but I disagree. There is nothing better for developing
database front-ends than Access. Nothing, anywhere, at any price.
That doesn't mean that in the future there won't be, but as of right
now. Access can do practically anything needed to create a front-end
for a database running on a PC on a network. The engine is a
different story. For medical records, I'd suggest using SQL-Server
because it can be made more secure. I don't believe that the JET
engine is secure enough to satisfy my (very strict) interpretation
of the HIPPA laws.

Access is a very powerful tool but as with any tool it has limitations.
*Some* of these limitations can be offset with massive coding.
So do I charge the client an additional $2000.00 dollars or a lot more to
develop a control in Access or do I switch to VB and buy the control with a
*lot* more function for a hundred dollars or so.

Access can do "practically anything" if the end user is willing to accept
some of the limitations that the program imposes.
Presenting a "spreadsheet" type format (say a monthly attendance record)
while maintaining relational integrity may be a demand and it requires a lot
of coding to do this in Access.

Inserting a code in a memo field and having it expand to a full sentence is
a bit difficult in Access.

As for HIPAA, I gave up on that a couple of years ago.
The government requirements are filled with comments like "take reasonable
steps to ensure that ..." and reading what *they* say is needed at
http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/hipaa/ is a world different from what the medical
and medical related community decided they wanted.

 

[Arvin Meyer]

Access is a very powerful tool but as with any tool it has limitations.
*Some* of these limitations can be offset with massive coding.
So do I charge the client an additional $2000.00 dollars or a lot more to
develop a control in Access or do I switch to VB and buy the control with a
*lot* more function for a hundred dollars or so.

Most of the controls that I want (although, I find I don't need very many)
run quite nicely in Access. I build my solutions to last for long periods of
time, changing only as my client's business rules and methodology change. I
try to avoid using objects which may have some built in obsolescence.

As for HIPAA, I gave up on that a couple of years ago.
The government requirements are filled with comments like "take reasonable
steps to ensure that ..." and reading what *they* say is needed at
http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/hipaa/ is a world different from what the medical
and medical related community decided they wanted.

I do some security consulting to insurance companies which use Access on the
departmental level. I assure you that while the government may be somewhat
vague, and doesn't punish violators very frequently, their investigations
cost a fortune to defend against. Trial lawyers are not under the
restrictions of the Attorney General and are very active when it comes to
collecting damages particularly when children are involved. California civil
code is even more strict:

http://www.privacy.ca.gov/code/cc1798.291798.82.htm

The fact is that with identity theft affecting 1 out of 6 adult Americans,
database security is nothing to be sneezed at. Improper or unnecessary
storage of data can cost more than a company can afford to lose. If you have
any clients who are doctors, I suggest you make sure that they are at least
aware of the intricacies of HIPPA, if you don't want their lawyers coming
after you when the **** hits the fan.
--
Arvin Meyer, MCP, MVP
Microsoft Access
Free Access downloads:
http://www.datastrat.com
http://www.mvps.org/access

 

[margaret bartley]

Your first step is to find out if others find it as easy to use as you do.

Most doc developed medical software programsdone by individuals are like a
custom built suit. It fits you perfectly but no one else finds it
comfortable. You need an off the rack approch, one that fits a lot of people
well but few perfectly.

This is crucial. You probably are not aware of all the "hardcoded"
variables you are using in your system. If you are going to create a
shrink-wrapped, run-time version of your program (which you need to do if
you are going to sell more than dozens), you should look at teaming up with
a professional developer or development team.

I've done shrink-wrapped Access applications, and the testing alone took two
full-time people, because you need to test for all the different versions of
operating systems, various versions of .dlls, you need to make sure that
NOTHING the user does can destroy data - otherwise you have a very expensive
mess to clean up -
and you need to hire a professional to write the documentation.

If you hand it out to one other doctor, and get his/her feedback, you can
get a sense of how big a job it will be to turn it into a generic program
that will run on anyone's machine, and how much customization you will need
to build into it for the way others set up their files. In my experience,
the customization requires as much programming and thought as the actual
work engine.

If it works will with one doc, try another, and by that time, you'll have a
good idea if you have a Mega-buck app that you can either hire others to
help you, or you can sell for the royalties.

The Developer's version of Access will create an executable that will not
require the user already have Access on their machine, but your testing will
want to make sure that none of the Help files or .dlls will interfere with
any of the customers' existing programs, and vice versa.